Claudia "Dolly" Powers: Don't shrug off state's debt problem

Published
6:36 pm EST, Thursday, February 23, 2012

Most of us accept the statement that Connecticut is an expensive place to live as common knowledge. Without question, parts of Connecticut are indeed expensive to live in, however there are towns and sections that are considerably easier on the family budget. We are not talking Oklahoma or North Dakota numbers for sure, but definitely better than swaths of Fairfield County.

So when Ben Phillips, spokesperson for the Connecticut State Employees Association, says: "We're one of the highest-cost states in the country, so we have a high cost of living," most folks would probably just shrug. But on second thought, should we be so accepting of Mr. Phillips' attempt to defend the level of public sector compensation (sixth highest in the nation)?

According to the U.S. Census Bureau in their annual survey of state and local governments, Connecticut's public sector pay level is only surpassed by the District of Columbia, California, New Jersey, New York, and Washington (state). Yes, we do have parts of the state that cost more to live in, but should that automatically translate into such high rates of pay for state employees? We are a pretty small state loaded down with a lot of government for which we are clearly paying a lot of money. That money comes from your pockets and mine, so perhaps we should be more careful about our response to statements like Mr. Phillips'.

Moody's Investors Service ranks Connecticut against all other states as: first in net tax-supported debt per capita; third in debt as a percentage of personal income; and third in debt-to-GDP ratio (quoting from a Feb. 18, 2011 paper from the Office of Legislative Research in Hartford). This particular report was compiled by Assistant Director Judith Lohman, with whom I worked for many years and trust as she is a straight shooter.

According to Moody's, our debt per capita (meaning for every man, woman, and child in Connecticut) is $4,859. Massachusetts follows us with a number lower by about $250, but has a higher debt as a percentage of personal income at 9.2 percent (Connecticut is 8.7 percent). In the debt-to-GDP ratio, Massachusetts and Hawaii bested Connecticut's 7.91 percent, but not by much.

In addition, our students shoulder the third highest higher-education debt in the country, a pretty sobering statistic for our children and grandchildren. One bright spot in this article is our ranking as having the fifth lowest poverty rate overall; hopefully with some more new jobs grown here, we can move that ranking up a bit.

My apologies for that boatload of numbers, but in order to counteract that proverbial shrug about our public servants' high salaries (and benefits), some facts, figures and comparisons are helpful for perspective. You may remember another column in this space last fall based on the analysis of Chicago-based Institute for Truth in Accounting which named Connecticut as the worst state in the country for taxpayer liability for unfunded financial obligations ($41,200 per capita).

As we look at this sobering array of numbers, one phrase seems to leap off the page: state debt. We in Connecticut need to address our state debt.

I grant you this topic is neither sexy nor cheerful, but a fact-based discussion is critical. These statistics quoted above clearly highlight serious factors in the cost of living in this state: very high taxes resulting in large part from out-of-control state spending and very significant state debt, current and future. No wonder Moody's downgraded our state yet again -- making it more costly to borrow or even finance current debt.

We cannot continue to shrug at this grim picture, unfortunate not just for us, but for our children and grandchildren. State government needs to immediately lower its cost by seriously reining in spending, borrowing, and taxes. Yes, I include taxes because folks must (and do) exit our state at a certain personal tipping point, ultimately making it even more costly for those of us still here. Sadly too many of our neighbors have reached that tipping point over the last 10 years, and taxes raised last year are sending even more fleeing.

So, The Rule is: No more shrugging.

Claudia "Dolly" Powers, a Greenwich resident, is a former special education teacher who represented the town's 151st District for eight terms in the state House of Representatives.